THE VIRGIN
65
the many
a heinous
offence ,
reflecting
a light
that
they cannot
find in their gloomy atmosphere
.
Laws are the concrete
opinions of the many , morals
the abstract sensations
of the few .
Outside ourselves
ethics do not
exist, for they are the great faculty of
sentient
existence .
The
law of the survival of the
fittest
is not moral , it is
essential
; but , manifested
through
reason
it becomes
ethical .
As regards the
aspirations of the
sexes , nature
cares
little whether
John loves Ann or Mary .
Man , however , cares much .
John is not married , Ann is ; Nature implants a similar
affinity in both , and they verge towards their own mag
netic
centre .
Nature
says
"
unite ! ”
Man , however,
thinks otherwise and
so builds up a stout abatis
out
of the dead
bones of unreasoning
ages , fencing Ann
in ; and
even if John does surmount this formidable
obstacle , a moral fougasse
awaits for his impetuous
footstep , which will morally blow him to smithereens
.
Again , John
is unmarried , and
Mary is in a similar
state of bliss , their affinities
repel and do not attract :
Nature
says
“ keep apart ! ” ;
man
says
“
I would
rather see you unite
with
Mary
than
I would with
Ann , affinities
be damned ! ” They
unite , and axiom
atize the postulate
of Hell .
Nature now says
“ part ! ”
man
says
“ Oh !
no you don't .”
Around
them
are
then speedily
constructed such labyrinthine
entangle
ments , that few
find
their way out ,
and
still
fewer
attempt
so
difficult
a
task-hence
Churches
and
Brothels .
If John , however, does
not
marry Mary ,
Ann
squalls , but as the jailer
can
always
let
himself
out
of
the prison
,
so
can man
,
if
he
does not drop his
keys through
some
matrimonial grating
.
Ann
then
locks
up
Mary
in
that
Bastille
of
despair which
is
called Piccadilly
(
this
is
no
paradox
)
-hence
prudes
F